Wedding Cake Trends 2021

Many weddings will be postponed to 2021, which gives us an extra year for planning. But that means that year 2021 will be booming with weddings! I wanted to write this article to go through wedding cake trends for 2021. So that each bride is up-to-date with the latest fabulous wedding cake options before committing!

Buttercream Beauties

In the last year, there has been a huge change in the cakes that I make. When I entered the cake industry, it was all about fondant and fondant decorations.

But I could see the exciting and beautiful buttercream cake trends emerging from other continents.

But it took a while to get to Ireland. But I believe it is getting established here in Ireland now.

In the past year if I was given complete freedom to make a cake for someone, I would have always made a beautiful tall buttercream cake.

And now more and more people write to me on social media asking for these cakes.

Whilst there are some beautiful techniques with fondant such as marble effect and golden edge, I see tall buttercream cakes much more trendy at the moment.

So down with fondant and up with the buttercream. I have some wonderful Buttercream Wedding Cakes examples available on my online shop. And each of them can be customised with flowers, colours, gold or silver leaf and much more to suit your wedding style.

Rustic and Floral

Prairie Floral Wedding Cake Look By Lulus Bakery

Fresh flowers will continue to dominate the floral wedding cakes. Unless you know a really good fondant artist, fresh flowers will add a much natural fresher look.

However, I feel the floral cakes will move away from using typical wedding flowers such as roses and lilies to more obscure, smaller, meadowy, unique kinds of flowers.

These flowers will add a rustic prairie look to your 2021 wedding cake in Ireland.

I also feel that such a prairie look is very symbolic of Irish nature. For this look edible flowers and greenery are pressed flat and placed on the cake.

Tall and Skinny Wedding Cakes

Amazing wedding cakes with rose gold and 4 tiers

This is a wedding cake trend that we cannot deny nor hold back. Tall and skinny has become the new “it” for wedding cake looks.
Just something about the height makes the cake more elegant however, with different decorations, it can be suited to the couples style whether that is simple, elegant, rustic or a semi naked look.

This is definitely the most contemporary style, and new techniques include a colourful metallic tier, edible prints, patterns, marbled look and lace.

Rustic and Naked Wedding Cake

There is something very romantic about a naked or semi naked wedding cake look. They still look elegant but they do have a rustic feel to them.

Wedding cake is an expression of the couple, and nowadays couples tend to be more casual and personal when it comes to planning their wedding.
You can go all out and leave most of the sponge revealed however, I prefer a more semi-naked wedding cake look. This is where only a sliver of sponge is shown here and there.

A Touch of Colour

A colourful wedding cake by Rosalind Miller UK

I feel a lot of couples are looking to express themselves with a for a more casual, fun, light-hearted type of wedding. And I see many traditions being thrown out of the window when it comes to the wedding cake.

Whilst white is the predominant colour for wedding cakes, I believe many couples now want to add a touch of colour for fun. This can be achieved with buttercream strokes or edible gold leaf.

Even a sombre effect where another colour is blended into a wedding cake adds a stunning effect. Below cake has a dark purple bottom tier and a sombre effect tall top tier. It is a really fun colourful look and expresses the couples individual style.

special wedding cake — Purple Wedding Cake

A Wedding is a very special event, and I think more and more people will want to express themselves with the venue, the style, the colours and the cake they choose.
They want to show their friends and families that they aren’t another typical couple with another typical wedding and a typical wedding cake. They want to add their own personality and individuality, and aren’t afraid to change things up a bit!

Dessert Table / Cake Bar

Another great trend I see emerging is swapping one big wedding cake for a Cake Bar / Dessert Table.
One big wedding cake may be seen as very typical and traditional, and as I said above couples want to express themselves in a fun, entertaining and amusing manner.

Last year I did wedding cupcakes for a small wedding in Wrights Anglers Rest in Dublin. It is such a lovely boutique looking venue, and the cupcakes were a perfect touch.

The couple wanted a modern option for wedding dessert which is still elegant and beautiful. And the beauty with cupcakes is that you can have a range of flavours and your guests can pick their favourite.

Their wedding colours were burgundy and dark blue, so the centre point of the dessert table was Red Velvet Cupcakes with Blue Macaroons.

However, if you still want to have your cake cutting ceremony with a Cake Bar, I would recommend ordering a smaller cake to go with your other desserts. This can be achieved through a stand alone cake or a cupcake tower topped with a small wedding cake.

I think having a Cake Bar instead of a traditional wedding cake will take some guts and courage, but I think young trendy couples will start to experiment with the different options.

I also think macaroons, meringue kisses, mini versions of traditional cakes (such as lemon drizzle, brownie, red velvet, berry tartlets) would be the ultimate Cake Bar filler. And cakesicles are a very trendy option for a wedding dessert table, and they are very convenient to eat, and in my opinion tastier than cake!

I love to decorate wedding cupcakes with handmade macaroons, they add so much beauty and elegance and make wedding cupcakes really special.

But for chocolate fans, a fresh strawberry and some sprinkles creates wonderful chocolate wedding cupcakes also. Different coloured buttercream and sprinkles can create a simple yet effecting look for wedding cupcakes.

Below is a gallery of some of the wedding cupcake options: